Cara y/n,

Your presence will be required at our ball this weekend celebrating the anniversary of our family arriving in England. I have cleared your absence with the Headmaster and a ticket will be waiting at the train station at your earliest convenience. We expect to see you no later than tomorrow morning.

Tutto il nostro amore,

Mamma + Papá

I groaned and crumpled up the letter, throwing it on the ground in front of me. I didn't forget that the ball was this weekend (how could I when they make the biggest deal out of it every year?), but I had blissfully failed to remember that I was needed at home.

I used to love this ball when I was younger, but it was simply because I didn't know any better. It was fun being a child and just prancing around, meeting my cousins if they were there, playing with the children of family friends who came. When I got older and I was forced to adhere to formal rules, it was much less enjoyable.

I didn't bother packing a bag; there was no need if I was going home. I simply took a quick break to tell Daphne and Theo where I'd be, along with stopping by the Head Girl and Boy dorms to let them know of my absence. To my disappointment, Cedric wasn't there and I was forced to tell Granger instead.

After grabbing some food from the kitchens, I headed to the station and boarded the earliest train I could. It was fairly empty but still had some people; there were always some teachers coming or going for whatever reason. I noticed a few that I briefly said hello to before trying to find a decent compartment.

I headed for the compartment that Daphne and I usually shared when we boarded for Hogwarts. It was the farthest down, with the intention of not being bothered. Without thinking, I slid open the door and stepped inside before noticing it was occupied.

"Malfoy?"

"Mm, hello, y/n," he murmured. How had I not noticed him in here? More importantly what was he doing here?

"Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt... I was just looking for a place to sit," I awkwardly shifted my weight to one side.

He motioned to the empty seat across from him. "You could join me. Might make the ride less quiet."

I looked hesitantly between the door and the empty seat, not knowing if I'd want to entertain the notion of being in his company.

Draco and I hadn't necessarily resolved our tensions entirely, but being around him was wholly more tolerable since our forced Hogsmeade trip some time ago. Combined with our patrols, his presence was more familiar. That wasn't to say I necessarily enjoyed it, but it was increasingly less difficult to be around him.

I decided to swallow my pride and sit with him. I eased into the seat and looked out the window. The train was starting; I could feel the vibrations of the engine.

"What brings you away from Hogwarts?" I mused.

"Same reason as you," he shrugged. "Your ball."

My eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "You're coming to the ball?"

"My parents sent me a letter saying I was required to attend. It's not like it was my choice."

"So they call, you run?"

"You're doing the same, aren't you?"

"It's my family's party," I sunk into my seat, avoiding his gaze.

"Then I suppose it's mine, too."

My eyes shifted to briefly meet his. They were icy, like usual, but a more subdued gray. It was almost like he was trying to hint at our arrangement without actually saying the words; it was a physically knowing sentiment which I understood immediately.

I didn't feel comfortable saying anything else. We sat in silence the rest of the way, the only sounds coming from the train or the rustling of the books we were reading. I could barely concentrate, though. I pretended to read; my fingers turning a page every two minutes or so to look like I was. My mind was elsewhere... thinking about how Draco was so accepting of his entrance to my family.

When our ride finished, he let me step out first and he followed. To our surprise, my parents had arranged for a carriage to take us to my family manor.

I knew Draco had been here before. Many times, actually. For one reason or another, it seemed like I was always at his home or he was at mine, but this was different. This was the first time since our wedding that he had been here. It felt different; in some ways, he had a claim to my home, as much as I had a claim to his.

We were ushered in by my house elves who were excited to see me, as I was to see them. I knew my parents treated them with respect but didn't quite have the same friendship that I did with most of them. Draco sneered when one younger house elf came up to hug my leg affectionately.

"You let your house elves be so... touchy?" he gibed.

"They just miss me, Malfoy," I told him lowly once they had scurried off, likely to prepare our rooms.

"It's strange seeing that type of relationship with your servants," he shook his head.

"They do take care of us, after all. Now quit your whining, let's meet my parents. I doubt yours will be far off," I rolled my eyes, heading for the drawing room where we spent most of our time when guests appeared.

He followed close behind me, gawking a bit at the portraits or decorations we had aligning the hallways. In the drawing room, as I suspected, were my parents along with Draco's.

"There's my little girl," my mom rushed over to me, hugging me tightly. Her and I had a rocky relationship since the wedding, but I could tell she was trying to make amends. Those amends would never be enough, but she was certainly making an effort which I could at the very least appreciate.

Narcissa followed suit, hurrying to Draco and giving him a kiss on either cheek. I noticed that he blushed slightly when she acted so affectionate with her son. She gave me a hug as well, which I was pleased to take part in. She was always a sweet woman.

They ushered us to the table where our fathers were sat; I greeted both of them politely while Draco shook their hands.

There was some idle banter to begin with, the formalities of hoping our studies were going well, succeeding in our extracurriculars, the likes. I hated that type of chat; it was necessary, but tiresome. House elves brought in some refreshments to ease the mood a little.

"The ball will be Saturday, as per usual," my mother informed us, sipping her coffee. "I've already made all the arrangements, the ballroom should be finished decorating by this evening and the drawing room as well as a few others will be handled tomorrow. I have the elves and some other hands working on it presently."

"You already planned everything?" I inquired. "We always did that together..."

"Did you still want to help? Apologies, y/n, I just figured you'd prefer staying out of it in light of... recent developments," she referenced my marriage.

As much as she was right, I would have still liked to help plan the ball. When I was younger, my mom would let me pick the color scheme of the night and where some little decorations went. As I got older, I was granted more creative freedom as I understood style and structure better.

Part of me was looking forward to doing that again this year, but I supposed that made sense why she hadn't requested me home sooner. Saturday was only two days away, after all.

"It's fine," I assured her. "Perhaps next time, then."

She beamed with a bright smile. "Perfect, honey. Now, there was one other thing I needed to attend to... a matter of your first appearance together. Not including the wedding, of course."

"Alright?" my eyes narrowed.

"I trust you both have your rings with you?" she asked, eyes gazing down to first my left hand, ringless, then his, the same.

"You're not going to make us wear them, are you?" I rolled my eyes.

"I'm sorry if you don't want to, y/n, but it's time you both start making a commitment to this arrangement! At least start by wearing your wedding rings. This shouldn't be controversial."

Becoming increasingly frustrated, I so badly wanted to yell and say that of course it's controversial, I was forced into this marriage. However, I knew that would only land me in trouble and I decided against it. Instead I opted to reply blankly.

"My ring is at Hogwarts. I didn't know I'd need it."

My mother sighed. "I'll send for someone to get it, then. It'll be back tomorrow, likely. And you, Draco?" she looked over at him who looked nervous, wrinkles in his forehead as a result of scrunching his eyebrows together.

"I'll wear it," he nodded.

"Is yours at Hogwarts, too? I can have them pick it up too—"

"Don't worry. I'll... have it for tomorrow."

My mother thanked him for his cooperation then turned back to look at me. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I should have told you in the letter to bring it. But you should still be getting used to wearing it."

I shook my head, sighing audibly. "It's alright, mamma. I think I'm just going to head up to my room..."

"Oh, y/n, I've had some of your things moved to the second master bedroom on the fourth floor. A house elf will show it to you if needed," my mother sipped her coffee casually, as if nothing happened.

"What? Why did you—"

"It's only couth for a married couple to stay together."

I looked over to gauge Draco's reaction, but his focus was on the teacup in front of him. He was clearly avoiding eye contact.

"B-but what about my room?" I stammered.

"Yours is still your own," my mother assured me. "But while the two of you are both here, you might as well share a room."

"But mamma! I don't want—"

"Y/n, there's no scandal. You two are married. It's completely acceptable."

My father stared me down from the other end of the table. "This isn't up for discussion, y/n. If you want to stay in your own room, you may do so when your husband isn't here. Draco's parents have already taken the liberty of bringing some of his things there, as well."

I could not believe what was going on; why were they so forceful about this?

Sure, we were married, legally. I suppose there was no scandal, like my mother insisted. There wouldn't be anything morally objectionable or concerning about it... under normal circumstances. I had avoided sharing a room with him at Hogwarts, but I didn't consider how different married life would be at home.

I may have warmed up to him somewhat in the past couple weeks, but that didn't mean I was suddenly ready to share a room with him.

I supposed if it was the second master suite, at least it would be large enough that maybe we wouldn't even touch. I could work something out to make it more bearable.

"Fine," I huffed. "I'll be up there if you need me..."

Before I could make my way out of the room, my father called out.

"Take Draco with you."

I craned my neck to look back at Draco who was wordlessly scooting his chair back and cautiously walking over to where I was. His eyes were down, avoiding eye contact again. By the time he made his way over to me, his back was hunched a bit so that he was slouching, his neck almost strained looking down.

He looked like a coward.

Once Draco was just a few steps behind me, I walked into the hallway and made my way down. Granted, it was a long hallway to where the stairs were and it would still be a few minutes walk, but I was eager to get a move on, without him.

We walked like this, him some paces behind, all the way up to the fourth floor. I knew exactly which room my parents were talking about, so it was no difficult task for me to find it. I always assumed this room would just be vacant; I didn't expect for my spouse and I to ever occupy it.

Without even looking back at him, I slammed the door open and let it bang against the wall on the opposite wall inside the room. I noticed Draco flinch. "What'd this door do to you?"

I rolled my eyes and glanced around the room. It was giant, of course. The colors were light, but sophisticated, mostly white and beiges with accents of red as a color scheme. It was a beautiful room, but what it represented was the opposite of what I wanted.

I sauntered over to the large, walk-in closet and noticed many of my clothes were already in here, as well as some of Draco's on the opposite end. In fact, most of the room was personalized to my likes. The bookshelf on the far corner was stocked with my favorites, the table had a coffee set on it (knowing I didn't drink tea), the loveseats were a soft red as I preferred.

I figured this was mostly since Draco didn't have input to the design; otherwise I could only imagine black and dark green. I didn't mind that color scheme at school, but it would be depressing to look at it every day. It was too doom and gloom.

When my eyes landed back on the bed, I noticed Draco laying down, looking up at the top veil of the canopy bed. It was larger than I would've expected, custom made for the most expansive size possible. The sheets were white, with a light red bedspread and thin, red curtains hanging from the top. His face was expressionless, just staring up.

"I see you've made yourself comfortable," I breathed out, rounding around the bed to the loveseat on the opposite side. I sat down and pulled my legs to the side so I was partially laying down on it.

"Might as well if I'm staying here for the weekend," he shrugged.

"Don't you find this... strange at all?"

"Not really," he sat up to look at me. His legs were spread far from each other, his forearms resting on the bed behind him. He looked tall, with his arms and legs elongated. "It was only a matter of time."

I supposed he was right. After we finished Hogwarts, we'd be forced to live together, likely not in either family's manor but our own somewhere in the countryside. At least then, I might have my own room. For the time being, I had to share with him.

"I think we should lay some ground rules," I deadpanned.

"Your call. This is your home, after all."

"Good. I think we should consider these next few nights as just being roommates, and nothing more."

He cocked his head to the side, revealing his long, pale neck. It was almost swan-like. "Elaborate on that."

"You stay on your side of the bed, I stay on mine. Don't go through my clothes in the closet, I won't go through yours. And definitely, no touching."

He breathed in deeply and clicked his tongue against his teeth before slowly nodding.

"As you wish."

———

A/N: Hopefully everyone is doing well with school coming up! I heard a lot of you either started already or start soon... eek!

My school starts soon, as well, and I'm hoping that it doesn't mess with my writing/uploading schedule, but if it does, then I'll be transparent and let you all know. I'm trying to crank out as many chapters in advance so I have more time later on! (That's also the reason for my absence on TikTok, so my apologies if you're missing my imagines.)

Good luck everyone!