CHAPTER TWELVE
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R E C O V E R Y

SHE LIMPED TO HAGRID'S HUT WITH MALFOY'S jacket wrapped around her. Luckily, Hagrid wasn't there. She stumbled across to her room, directly heading to the shower.

Discarding her wet clothes, she headed to the shower, the steam escaping through the curtains. She stood there, feeling the hot substance cover her body.

She dried herself afterwards, putting on some dry clothes and Malfoy's jacket over her shoulders. She gripped the fabric and couldn't help but notice the smell of masculinity on his perfume invading her nostrils. (Y/n) closed her eyes, getting closer and closer to the state of relaxation, until she remembered she had to go to the library to practice the spells she'll be using tomorrow.

With all the strength the girl had left, (Y/n) jogged towards the castle and went to the library.

The shelves towered above her like walls of knowledge waiting to be broken; amazed by the quantity of books, she looked high up as she walked in search for Hermione.

"(Y/n)!" Hermione whispered, getting her attention.

The girl turned her head and saw her sitting by the window. She gave her a small smile and sat down besides her.

"I have found some spells useful against fire; you will just have to practice them," she said, flipping through the pages. "Here, let's start with an easy one: Aguamenti."

She nodded in agreement, "Aguamenti!" She whispered, flicking her wand in a 'S' shape. A few drops of water escaped her wand, wetting the table. A faint giggle escaped from their mouths.

"You'll have to practice them later, you might flood the library," Hermione joked, playfully punching her arm.

Hermione took a different book and showed her a a page with a charm called Aqua Eructo.

"Aqua Eruc–"

"Not here, (Y/n)!" She whispered.

(Y/n) stifled a laugh and took the books with her. They left the library to eat dinner; she told herself she should visit the library more often, since it may contain some useful history about her past. Her enthusiasm faded slowly as seconds passed; the Tournament was just around the corner and all the incidents have done nothing but cause her more problems. Agar tried to kill her, Cedric wouldn't stop tormenting her– teasing her that she had no chance against them, and it was true. While they celebrated their victory, she'd be in her coffin and no one would attend to my funeral. However, Malfoy had stopped being completely ill-mannered by showing compassion a few hours ago. Her heart kept telling her she should talk to him more, however with all of these occurrences would be difficult.

(Y/n) and Hermione parted ways, she on the Gryffindor table and her on the Slytherin one. The others gave an apologetic smile, feeling sorry for the girl. Oh, how she'd wish to sit with them... Not having friends in Slytherin was a disadvantage... but Malfoy... no–

"There she comes!" Malfoy spoke, raising his goblet towards (Y/n). His friends started cheering as she walked toward them. "Come sit next to me," Malfoy smirked, moving over to the side.

(Y/n) frowned confused but sat next to him anyway. Maybe he was changing and becoming a better person. She moved to the side, uncomfortable by the proximity of their bodies.

"You should eat something," he said, seeing her empty plate. She looked at him confused by his false concerns, making him smile smugly. "What? You're allowed to enjoy my company, but only because I want you to win and prove everyone how Slytherin will always be the best."

"If I died, I'm pretty sure you and Cedric would be celebrating my funeral..." (Y/n) sarcastically said, getting some food. "I need some distraction," she sighed.

Malfoy moved closer to me, "With this face and this body, it would be easy for you to distract yourself."

(Y/n) rolled her eyes, yet she couldn't help but stare at him awhile he ate quietly. Her heart kept telling her to touch him but her mind was urging her to get away from him.

Before leaving, their eyes intertwined one last time.

•

(Y/n)  woke up restless the next morning with a terrible feeling inside her gut. She didn't want to participate– but she had to, for the sake of her Past and her Future. When she went the Great Hall for breakfast, everyone looked at her. She forced herself to eat an abundant breakfast, since that may be the last time she'd eat. Harry and Ron helped her walk to the tents with all the other champions, Dumbledore and a few people from the Ministry were; however, they had to leave.

"Champions, please come forward!" Called Dumbledore. They all stood around him. "Soon, you will be leaving to defeat your opponents. The task is to get the egg; without it, you won't be able to proceed with the Second Task, understood?" He showed them a smoking bag.

Her opponents picked first, each of them pulling a different dragon. She gulped when she slowly put her hand in the bag, feeling something sharp scratching it. The girl pulled the dragon out, a black one with red scales that radiated fury in its eyes.

"Ooh, good luck, baby..." Cooed Cedric, pinching her cheek.

"That dragon is also known as The Winged Shadow or The Black Beast." Added Viktor.

Her heart started to beat uncontrollably; she needed to be alone, the girl was sweating and couldn't stand still without her legs shaking. She sat on a chair, closing her eyes.

"Harry?" She asked, seeing a silhouette through the fabric of the tent. "Harry!" She gasped, standing up and hugging him with her eyes closed.

"What the hell are you doing?" The person said, finally appearing. Her eyes widened when she saw Malfoy.

And she was hugging him.

"Oh... I thought you were someone else," she whispered, with her arms still wrapped around his torso.

"Yeah, right. How sweet of you to compare me to Potter," he rolled his eyes.

"What brings you here?" She asked, making him stare at her lilac eyes intensely.

"I came to wish you luck," he said, with a grin slowly appearing on his face. (Y/n) smiled, and buried her head on his chest, feeling his irregular heartbeat. "Last night you mentioned I wouldn't care if you died... Well, don't. For real, this time I wouldn't be there to save you."

(Y/n) looked at him, searching for sincerity in his words.

"I mean, if you die... I wouldn't have anyone to make fun of," Malfoy teased, making her push him away and cross her arms in disbelief. Oh... his ego again... ruining the moment.

"For once, I thought you were being nice," she pouted, "there are plenty of other people you can make fun of."

"Well, I think our arguments are far way more entertaining," he replied with an air of superiority.

A flash blinded her for a few seconds, only to realise someone had taken a picture of them.

"Oh my, what a story we could make out of this... Last Goodbye? Young Tragedy? Eternal Love?" Rita Skeeter smiled brightly when she showed them a picture of her and Malfoy very close to each other. "Love, will you please put your arm around her waist and smile?" She asked Malfoy.

Before (Y/n) could protest, the picture was already taken. She was beyond furious, but she had to save my energy for the task.

"Your beauty is truly breathtaking, dear..." She then commented, grabbing her face and examining it closely. "You could be a model... I should tell the designers!" She chirped, flashing another picture of her face and finally left.

(Y/n) and Malfoy stared at each other, trying not to laugh, until a loud booming sound from outside wiped the smiles off of their faces.

The Triwizard Tournament had begun.