New Year's Day was as slow as could be. After an interesting night, we all slept in and even got a pretty late start to breakfast.

As we groggily ate, we made no attempt to uprise conversation. House elves shuffled around the ball room, cleaning. We just moped around the Manor and even went to the library for the first time ever, at least for me.

The library had about six bookshelves spread throughout the room and a few tables directly in front as you walk in. A tall window overlooked the backyard and the blue sky shone through the library room, creating a comforting sensation to radiate throughout the room.

As I had sat down with one of the books I picked off of the shelves, a large patterned owl dropped a letter on the table in front of me.

There were large water-looking droplets scattered across the envelope. I avoided the water stains and attempted to open the letter.

I pulled out a piece of beige parchment and unfolded it carefully. Bigger stains covered the actual letter and smeared some of the ink used to write. I began to read, guessing the words that were smudged.

Dear Y/n,

I just heard about yer and Ron. I hope yer feeling better. Anyways, I have mor news. Draco Malfoy musta ran ter his father after Buckbeak hurt him. Buckbeak has been sentenced ter death, and soon.

Hope you feel better than me,

Hagrid.

It took me a little while trying to figure out what the letter said through the smudges and misspelled words, but I finally understood. Hagrid must've been crying his eyes out while writing this and it was all due to the person in this library with me, right across from my chair, in his own house.

"Everything okay?" Draco asked, peeking up from a book and seeing my face which most likely resembled a person who found out a fish was squished to death: surprised and disgusted.

"No, and it's your fault!"

"Why is everything my fault?"

"Malfoy! You did this!" I yelled, throwing the letter at him and resisting the urge to push him off of his chair.

He caught the letter and began reading.

"It's a bird!" he defended himself.

"It's a hippogriff! I'm so sick of this. You don't care when someone else is obviously hurting!" I shouted, walking out of the library and heading back to mine.

I heard a long sigh as I exited but ignored it as annoyance overflowed through my veins.

•••

The last days of winter break were dreadful. I ultimately decided to avoid Draco the rest of the trip. During breakfast, lunch, and dinner, I decided to ask Lucious some questions of my own to distract myself and focus on something other than the bloke who sat across from me.

I isolated myself throughout the day in my room and Pansy would randomly come and occupy me. I ended up explaining to her what happened and I'd bet she already told Blaise.

Blaise was becoming distant and sided with Draco more often than I expected he would. This was just a break with Draco, I didn't want Blaise to get involved. I suppose it was too late for that.

It was the last day of break now; tomorrow would be the day I hopped on the Hogwarts express in the late morning.

I was laying in bed and my friends were off doing whatever it is that they do together. It felt wrong isolating myself but I also wanted time to process everything going on. My mind wandered off to random thoughts and I went over them many times.

Buckbeak was really going to die and it was all Draco's fault. I have had minimum contact with Harry and Hermione over this break and I hope they haven't sided with Ron over the breakup since they've been hanging with him. I hope Hermione didn't find out the real reason that Ron and I broke up. What if Hermione gets upset with me when Draco starts avoiding her because I ought to know if I've been here the whole time? Did she even know I came to the Manor from Blaise's house?

All these thoughts came to my mind and, for once, I didn't shove them away. I pondered them which didn't do much help in the end except help validate my feelings. Although, I do suppose that that's very important.

I decided to pack up and prepare for the morning departure rather than depressingly lay in bed all day. All the hygiene products in the bathroom, clothes in drawers, and any miscellaneous objects were stuffed into my trunk. It took a good deal of time gathering all the items and making sure it all fit comfortably. Once it successfully shut after a large hassle of squishing everything down, refolding clothes, and sitting desperately on the trunk, I let out a sigh of relief.

Footsteps approached the hallway and I could tell that Pansy, Blaise, and Draco were either coming back from a trip or gathering in the hall to make plans. I realized that they only took a few footsteps, forcing me to conclude that Pansy and Blaise walked into Draco's room.

Jealousy struck me unexpectedly. Of course I wanted to hang with my friends but I couldn't stand looking at Draco after he initiated the innocent creatures execution.

I wracked my brain for a few minutes, wondering if I should just burst in and weave myself in their conversation. The more I contemplated, the more horrible the idea sounded. I finally decided against it, disregarding the jealous feeling growing intense throughout my body.

Sadness overwhelmed me for the rest of the night. There wasn't a reason to cry, but I had the sudden urge to. The urge grew stronger, but so did my will to fight it. I blinked away any forming tears and laid down numbly, wondering if I should skip dinner. My stomach grumbled and I groaned defeatedly; I was sad, but I would be worse off on an empty stomach.

Dinnertime approached a few short minutes later and I made my way down the stairs, alone.

"Lovely for you to make it," Narcissa genuinely spoke.

I forced a smile at her and sat at my usual spot close to Lucious and across from Draco.

"Hello, Mr. Malfoy," I greeted.

"Hello, Y/n," he simply stated.

I smiled at the thought of Lucious being a father figure to me when my parents weren't there.

"I have a question, sir. Do you have any advice on how to deal with someone who has betrayed you or purposely done something selfish that they knew would hurt others?" I intently questioned, sending a "ahem" cough in Draco's direction.

"Hm, interesting question. I believe that you could confront the person about it and find a way to forgive or simply stray away from them. If they didn't care enough about your feelings then, why would they now?" he rhetorically asked.

"Wow, that's a great perspective. Thank you." I sent a sly smile.

Lucious sat up in his chair, straightened his tie, and nodded his head professionally, seemingly proud of his advice.

"Chicken or steak?" A squeaky house elf asked me.

"Steak, please," I respectfully replied.

A sirloin plopped onto my plate and the house elf took orders from the others sat around the table. Draco was jabbing at his food angrily, most likely due to my not-so-subtle attempt to confront him while asking his father obvious questions. On the contrary, Blaise, Pansy, and Narcissa were calmly chewing down their food and chatting about date locations around Hogwarts.

"Y/n, dear?" Lucious looked to me. "I noticed you talking to Mr. Pucey at the ball the other day."

"Oh yes, he unexpectedly asked me to dance." I laughed it off.

"He is a lovely boy. Do stay close to him if you would?"

"Oh, sure," I obeyed.

"He is a pureblood and he has good manners, as you do. I think he would be a good acquaintance or friend to you." He nodded at his own words.

"He seemed kind. I'll be sure to greet him in the halls."

"Draco, take note of Y/n. She listens to me." Lucious smirked.

I giggled at him and we continued talking while Draco rolled his eyes and scoffed quietly every couple of seconds.

After we were dismissed from dinner, Pansy walked with me to my room and we laid side by side on my bed.

"Lucious really enjoys talking to you."

"I'm sure it's nothing, he probably just doesn't enjoy talking to his arrogant son. I honestly don't blame him," I mumbled.

"Hey! Don't be like that, he's my friend and I'm not here to talk behind his back with you," Pansy sensibly stated.

"You don't have to talk, just listen."

"Y/n! Enough!" she teasingly shouted.

"Okay, I'm done."

"Good, now we are all packed, should we go hang out with the boys on our last day?" she hinted.

"Pansy! They are both probably talking about me right now. They want to see me as much I want to see them. I'll just stay here and you go have fun. There's no need for you to sit here and keep me company," I replied.

"C'mon we all want to get along," she begged.

"Maybe Draco should've thought about that before he got Buckbeak killed!"

"I'm sure he meant nothing of it! He did that awhile ago, he's changed."

"No he hasn't! He hasn't apologized or talked to me at all about it. He only cares about himself. He obviously saw how upset I was and didn't do or even simply say anything about it."

"Now don't go getting all annoyed with me! I'm just trying to help us all get along. I hate it when you two are fighting. That's all you ever do anymore! Not to mention, Blaise is stressed over it too!"

"Seems like a problem now, doesn't it? All we've ever done was fight." I scoffed.

"That's not true! We could all get along at one point."

"Pansy! I have a good reason to be angry this time."

"Can't you just forgive him?"

"No, I really can't." I sighed heavily. "After everything. Now this? All he does is hurt me and it's not worth it."

"Well I suppose I'm going to stay here with you so I'm not next on your hit list."

"I don't have a hit list Pansy!" I laughed. "Although I do have a kiss list and a to-kiss list."

"Same," she blankly replied, which earned a cackle from me at her bluntness. "But it's a mental note."

"Care to share?" I asked.

"Well my kiss list consists of obviously Blaise, then Draco, Crabbe, Goyle, Ernie, Theo, Marcus, Adrian, and a couple others," Pansy thoughtfully listed.

"You really got around, but you forgot Harry." I grinned.

"That didn't count. It was a game of truth or dare. You?" she asked.

"Ron," I said.

"And?"

"That's all."

"How about the to-kiss list?"

"George Weasley, Muggle George, Lucious, hm who else? Oh —"

Pansy gasped. "I'm sorry, did you say Lucious?"

"Did I? Hm. Anyways, Harry and Fred."

"Interesting."

The rest of the night we messed around and laughed. We heard Blaise and Draco chuckling a couple times from the other room. We ignored them each time and continued talking. It was probably 1 in the morning by the time we fell asleep.

"I got you!" I screamed.

She fell.

My sister flew right off of her broom and onto the ground. Bleeding, screaming, crying. I joined in on the screaming and sobbing while my parents shouted unholy words in my face.

"I didn't mean to!" I sobbed, attempting to hug them and relieve the grief we were all experiencing.

"Get your murderous hands off of me!" my dad bellowed.

I cowered down and continued bawling my eyes out as my parents slowly faded away from my view and the world went black.

Pansy fell asleep next to me last night and she was shaking me awake. I jerked my watery eyes open and realized I had been screaming. Pansy had a solemn look on her face and I apologized repeatedly.

"Stop apologizing! It isn't you. Please. You're okay now," she comforted while hugging me tightly.

"I want it to stop," I said, my heart physically aching from the pain of seeing my sister die again.

"I know, I know you do. I hate this for you. It's okay now. You're safe."

A few tears slipped from my eyes and after awhile, I was left numb, like the numerous times I've experienced before. My breath was heavy and I fell back asleep quickly while Pansy comforted me.

"Shh," she said hugging me tighter and I drifted off peacefully.

I awoke the next morning, alone and miserable. Last nights events had not escaped my mind and I felt childish needing Pansy to comfort me. I only had a small amount of time to carry my things and make my way downstairs. I scurried around my room and gathered all my belongings into a large pile. I made the bed, took one last look around the room, sighed, then gathered my belongings and shut the door behind me.

I clomped down the stairs, trying not to drag my trunk on the expensive flooring. Once I got to the ground floor, I adjusted the stuff in my hands and made my way to the front door.

"We will be using a portkey," Narcissa spoke.

I turned to my right and Draco, Pansy, Blaise, and Lucious had been standing there waiting for me.

"Sorry for being late. I'm ready," I quickly said.

"No worries," Lucious said while grabbing my shoulder and leading me next to the group. "Just touch the vase on the table and we will be at King's Cross."

"3... 2... 1."

We all grabbed onto the glass vase that sat upon the dining room table. I felt a swirling sensation and seconds later, I found myself on the ground outside of King's Cross. I quickly brushed the dirt off of me and stood up, as did Pansy.

All five of us walked through the platform and, finally, we made our way to platform in between nine and ten. Muggles whizzed by, ignoring the few wizards who were running through the wall right in front of them.

"No need for us to walk with you," Lucious said.

"Lucious, enough. We can walk if you'd like," Narcissa assured.

"No need," Draco said.

"Well, goodbye," Narcissa sadly spoke.

"Bye, mum," Draco mumbled while giving Narcissa an embarrassed side hug.

Narcissa nodded and gave Pansy and I a long hug. Blaise gave her a short hug as well and then Lucious patted Blaise on the back. Draco simply said "bye" to his father and the two boys ran through the platform between nine and ten.

Pansy shook hands with Lucious and leaned against the brick wall cooly and instantly fell through. I stood there for a second not knowing if I should shake his hand or walk away from Lucious. Suddenly, I was pulled into a short hug initiated by Lucious himself and I lightly hugged back.

"Contact me if you need anything or simply want to chat," he spoke in my ear as though we were having a secret conversation.

"I will. Thanks, Mr. Malfoy."

My eyes stung aggressively and I turned away and walked through the platform. I blinked away the tears that dared to slip down my face and sped up to walk by Pansy.

Saying goodbye to Lucious and Narcissa was unexpectedly difficult and I felt as if they were truly parental figures that I had to leave behind. It was nice for a change.

"We only have 2 minutes," Blaise called out, frantically hauling his trunk into the familiar Hogwarts Express.

I followed them into the scarlet train and they sat in a small compartment. I was about to sit down but I heard a voice shout my name.

I turned around and noticed Astoria and Daphne in a compartment. Astoria was standing outside the sliding glass door and waving for me to sit with her.

"I'm gonna —" I said and then stopped, noticing that my friends had already started a conversation without me.

I simply walked away from them and dragged my belongings into the compartment with Daphne and Astoria.

"Hi, how are you guys?" I asked, taking a seat.

"I'm great," Astoria answered.

"I'm fine," Daphne uneasily spoke.

Daphne and I weren't that close but we were still roommates and I hadn't even given her a chance, which I decided to do at that moment.

"Daphne, I'm sorry I haven't paid mind to you much. Now that I'm closer with Astoria, I realize I will being hanging around you more often. I wouldn't like it to be awkward," I genuinely said.

"Oh — well, I wouldn't like that either," she said and smiled, slowly and visibly becoming more comfortable as the ride went on.

I told them stories about going to Muggle cities, dinners with Lucious, and the other fun events that partook over the break. They were extremely good listeners. They nodded, responded, and questioned at all the right times. I felt comfortable in their presence. After awhile of rambling on about my trip, I decided to listen to their adventures as well.

Catching up took quite a while and I realized that Hogwarts would be approaching in our eyesight at any minute. I stared out of the window and finally saw the beautiful school appear from behind a line of frosty trees.

The express came to a complete stop and I hopped off. A hundred or so students filed out of the train and we made our way over to carriages pulled by beautiful creatures.

I hopped in a carriage with Astoria and Daphne and we were pulled to the entrance of Hogwarts. We joked around and radiated extremely happy energy as we were back at our true home.

"It's going to be an interesting rest of the year," Astoria sighed.

"Why is that?" I questioned.

"Well, with a murderer on the loose, Harry fighting for his life, and hanging out with you more, I just expect interesting events to occur."

"We'll see." I chuckled, making my way through the doors.

I immediately rushed to the Slytherin common room door which was already propped open prior to my arrival.

I climbed my way up the usual stairs to my dorm and set my trunk and other random small items on the floor next to my comfortable-looking bed.

I didn't bother unpacking yet and decided to sprint to the Gryffindor common room to visit Harry and Hermione who, hopefully, would be happy to see me.