▬▬ eight; the dragon and the loss of important friends.
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"THEY ARE SO IMMATURE. They communicate by sending me like an owl between them. Their behaviour is driving me insane!" Hermione Granger had groaned out her frustration while the two girls walked towards the champion's tent. Loud cheering and chanting traveled with the air from the arena, adding pain to Lauren's headache of worry. Her nerves were tense and she wasn't even competing.

"They'll figure it out," sighed Lauren who was freezing and whished dearly she had taken a warmer jacket. "I bet Ron will realize Harry could die any second in this tournament and then they'll become best of friends again."

Hermione let out a dry chuckle, but it sounded more like a cough. When they got closer they saw that two men stood by the entrance like guards, because they probably were. The two girls sneaked to the back and pressed close to the back opening. "Psst. Harry, is that you?"

From the inside said the familiar voice, "yeah," quietly.

Lauren listened carefully and had to focus hard to even hear him over the loud noise around them. "How are you feeling?" She asked, and then Hermione put in,

"The key is to concentrate. After that, you just have to—"

"Battle a dragon," he mumbled.

—

Lauren had never felt such relief as when her brother grabbed the golden egg and the dragon breathed heavily in its enchanted sleep. She stood up and cheered loudly with everyone else as her brother left the arena with a dirty and bloody face, but a wide smile on his lips. It was now a short pause, and people were making small talk but Lauren's eyes drew her attention to the blonde boy sneaking away.

He left his seating and climbed down the stairs in a hurry, and she could've sworn he seemed to be upset. She looked at Hermione and thought. She wanted to follow Draco and see what happened, but she needed to stay and support Harry.

"What?" Hermione frowned as her friend had been staring at her awkwardly long without a single word.

Lauren shook her head and then looked at the stairs, "I need to go check something."

"But it's almost Harry's turn, you might miss it." Lauren already felt bad for leaving, but Harry had all these people around him, but Malfoy was running away alone—Harry would forgive her, she thought and then followed Draco's tracks back to the castle.

It felt like a stone landed in her stomach because of her guilt for leaving, for choosing Draco over Harry but it wasn't about that. She just wished he'd understand that. She was surprised that she could hear the crowd cheering even from here, by the entrance of the castle. And she didn't take many more steps before she heard the roar of a dragon and saw the fire. Harry was fighting a dragon, and she was looking for Draco Malfoy.

She didn't dare to shout his name because there could still be someone else around. So instead she just walked around and scanned every hall with her eyes as she quietly whispered his name. She passed the stairs of which behind held the secret door with the secret staircase up to hers and Draco's secret hiding place. Maybe he went there? But why would he go there? 

Lauren decided to go up the forgotten stairs even if she had no reason to believe he was there—but he was. As she reached the top he was sitting on the floor, leaning his head against the wall with his eyes closed. "Tired?"

His eyes shot up, but he calmed down when he realized who was standing in front of him. "Shouldn't you be supporting Potter?" He spat.

She sat down near him and looked into his eyes, "I should. I just, I saw you run off and I wanted to make sure you're okay."

"Thanks," he said.

"So. . . Are you okay?" She asked and he turned his face once again to look at her, she got the impression that he didn't want here there.

"Mhm."

"Well, you're busted. What's up? Did something happen?" He just closed his eyes again, ignoring her—and she took it as a sign that she could make a joke, "are you afraid of dragons?"

But he didn't find it funny, he opened his eyes and gave her a look of disgust, the look he gives the nerds when they answer questions. "Leave me alone, will you?" But his voice made her even more uncomfortable.

"I was just joking, I'm sorry—"

"Lauren, leave! And don't follow me around every time you see me, it's creepy," he said sternly.

"I'm sorry that I care about you," she said and had sad eyes as she tried to stay strong and not show that she had gotten offended. "It won't happen again—" Something hitting one of the windows drew her attention, and Draco's as well. She walked across the room to see the one and only Harry Potter hanging onto the windowsill for his dear life while he seemed to be trying to grab something from above the window (the small roof of it).

She opened the window beside him and stuck out her head, "what the hell are you doing Harry?!"

He turned his head with wide eyes, "what are you doing? Aren't you supposed to be with the others?" The girl ignored him and met the eyes of the dragon climbing towards her friend, and so she without hesitation took him by the waist and pulled him inside—and just in the same second, he got a hold of his broom that had been stuck on the roof.

He stumbled through the window which Lauren was fast to close, and the dragon seemed to stay on the roof above them, waiting for its bait to come out of its hiding.

As the raven boy stood up he had a look of confusion plastered on his face. His eyes went from Lauren to Draco, and then back again to Lauren and then he went on while trying to find words. Draco sat up straighter and looked at Lauren, but she couldn't read his expression so she looked at Harry instead.

"What— Are you? What—"

"Harry," she sighed. "It's not what you think."

"You go behind my back to hang out with the guy that daily tries to throw insults at me?" Suddenly Harry seemed angry and betrayed.

"Oh, what's the matter Potter? You kinda' have it coming—"

"Draco!" She snapped, he looked at her with a frustrated glare. "You're making it worse. And Harry, this is none of your business!"

"You're right, it isn't." He picked up his broom and walked to the window. She immediately regretted how loud her voice came off, and her choice of words. She could've just told him but instead, she watched him jump out of the window and let himself get chased by the dragon out from the school grounds. She turned around and glared at Draco with angry eyes, but she couldn't stop them from being welled up with tears.

She opened her mouth to speak but changed her mind, and closed her eyes before whispering "I'm sorry" as she left. He heard her, but she thought he didn't, and he saw her glassy eyes—and he has never hated himself more than he did at that very moment.

—

"I'm so proud of you," she said and hugged him tightly as he was just about to join his Hufflepuff friends. 

"Thanks," he smiled. "I'm gonna go celebrate, but I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah." Her brother walked away and she smiled when she saw everyone hugging him and cheering him on. 

She went back to the Gryffindor common room that was crowded and between the walls flew cheering sounds back and forth. They were holding up Harry in the air and chanted his name. She smiled and joined in to applaud, but she didn't dare to go near because she knew he was still angry at her.

Seamus handed him the egg after he'd kissed it and said, "go on, Harry. What's the clue?"

Her friend held the air up to make sure everyone saw it, "who wants me to open it?" Everyone cheered 'yes' and he chuckled, "do you want me to open it?"

As he opened the golden egg everyone was excited and curious, but as a horrible loud sound started screaming everyone backed away and held their ears. He quickly turned it off just in time for a red-haired boy walk in and join Lauren's side, "what the bloody hell was that?" asked he.

Harry and Ronald stared at each other while his older brother said, "All right, everyone! Go back to your knitting."

And his twin said, "this is gonna be uncomfortable enough without all you nosy sods listening in."

Hermione was seated on the back of a couch and Lauren sat down in front of her and leaned her backhead against her friend's stomach as they both watched the two boys awkwardly start talking.

"l reckon you have to be barking mad to put your own name in the Goblet of Fire," said Ron.

"Caught on, have you? Took you long enough."

Ronald responded quickly with, "l wasn't the only one who thought you'd done it. Everyone was saying it behind your back." Lauren did a mental facepalm, why are boys like this?

"Brilliant," muttered Harry. "That makes me feel loads better."

"Least l warned you about the dragons—"

Harry furrowed his eyebrows, "Hagrid warned me about the dragons."

"No, no, no, l did. No, don't you remember? l told Hermione to tell you. . . that Seamus told me that Parvati told Dean that Hagrid was looking for you. Seamus never actually told me anything, so it was really me all along. l thought we'd be all right, you know. . . after you'd figured that out."

"Who—? Who could possibly figure that out? That's completely mental," chuckled Harry lightly.

"Yeah. lsn't it? l suppose l was a bit distraught." They both looked from the floor and up at each other in silence with nervous smiles.

Hermione frowned, "boys. . ."

People started to move around and some left the common room. And after Ron and Harry had seemed to be back to normal they sat down on the couch in front of the girls, and now there was barely anyone else in the room. Harry's smiled faded though as soon as he met the brunette.

She had a desperate look on her face as she said softly, "Harry, I just—"

"I don't really wanna hear it right now, Lauren. Not now," said he and the other two beside them looked back and forth in confusion before the ginger girl asked,

"what's up with you two?" 

Lauren looked at Harry as if she was waiting for him to decide what they should answer. He just shook his head and stood up, "none of your business. Ron, come on, we should head to bed."

Ronald stood up uneasy and followed Harry after a small wave and a quiet goodnight. "Harry," pleaded Lauren but he was already in the stairs and didn't even stop when he spoke,

"I don't wanna hear. Go talk to your boyfriend about it."

"Harry!" Her voice was much stronger and determined than they had ever heard it before, and it made them both turn around to look at her, and Hermione by her side took one step back as he saw a flash of green in Lauren's brown eyes.

"You can't just leave like I'm the bad guy! I've done nothing wrong and I won't let you treat me like I did."

He stared into her eyes as she didn't notice them turning into green. "Lauren, what are you doing?"

She frowned, "what the hell?" She saw them all look at her in confusion and fear, why were they looking at her like that? 

"Your eyes," mumbled Hermione. Lauren took a step back and stumbled over a chair and at some point, before her body collided with the carpet, her vision became black.

▬▬ author's note ▬▬

Long chapter today with drama and a cliffhanger. . . What happened to Lauren?!

[ last updated: 22/11/20 ]
Stay tuned, thank you! <3