Deception

The first time Amara saw Draco Malfoy she had nearly tripped over her own feet from staring at him for, what some would consider, too long. It was their first year and it was on the train, heading to Hogwarts.

All the kids had been so excited to finally start Hogwarts. Amara couldn’t help but get sucked up in the hype.

She had met Fran, a dark haired girl who never seemed to shut up. Amara had found herself following this girl around the train from one compartment to the other.

It was during some point when Fran had left another compartment and was heading towards the next one when Amara had spotted the one and only Draco Malfoy.

Of course, she didn’t know it was him, per say. Sure, Jonathan had often told her that the boy looked like his father - in which Amara actually knew what Lucius looked like from pictures and what not. Aside from Draco’s shocking blond hair, Amara actually didn’t pay much attention him.

It was when he was yelling at some short, plump boy that Amara realized who he was exactly. It also helped that Draco had snarled out his name to the little boy and tried to make it into a threat by adding that his father would here about this.

Apparently the plump boy had scuffed Draco’s shoe.

But seeing Malfoy in the flesh had made everything so real to Amara. She realized that she would have to get to know this rude boy.

She had been walking while staring and had practically fallen to the ground. If Fran hadn’t been right there to stop her from falling, that is.

Amara could remember that day so well. The thoughts that had been running through her head. Luckily she didn’t actually have to do much but make herself scarce during the first three years of school. In all actuality she was supposed to start talking to Malfoy her fourth year. But with the Triwizard Tournament and everything, nothing happened. Not to mention that Amara was uncomfortable with the plan and had grown, what Jonathan had angrily told her, soft.

Amara didn’t think she had gone soft, though. Just scared, if anything.

But of course, Jonathan knew how to fuel her hatred for the Malfoy’s by keeping his end of the deal. That summer he had taken her to see her mother. Seeing her mother so unlike herself had made Amara see red.

Willing these thoughts away, Amara followed the heard of students to her next lesson.

It was a cool Tuesday afternoon as Amara headed towards Hagrid's hut. She was bundled up, determined not to let the cold in.

She held tightly to Draco’s hand and leaned in closely to him for warmth.

Amara and Draco trudged through the snow until they reached the edge of the forest where Hagrid (who had finally come back from wherever he had been) stood waiting for them. His face was bruised and had cuts that seemed to still be bleeding. He looked absolutely dreadful.

“We’re workin’ in here today!” Hagrid called to his students, jerking his head towards the forest. He held what seemed to be a cow, over his shoulder. “Bit more sheltered! Anyway, they prefer the dark. . .”

“What prefers the dark?” Malfoy asked Amara, Crabbe, and Goyle. His voice was sharp and she could hear the panic behind his words. “What did he say prefers the dark- did you hear?”

Amara was also quite nervous, but having Malfoy have a small freak out was amusing her and was helping to push aside her own fears.

“I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about,” Amara whispered to him and kissed his cheek in hopes to distract him from his own fright. “And besides, maybe it’ll eat Potter.”

Draco gave her a sharp look. “Don’t give me false hope.”

Amara chuckled and shook her head as Hagrid began to speak again.

“. . . Now, what we’re studyin’ today is pretty rare, I reckon I’m probably the on’y person in Britain who’s managed ter train em’-”

“And you’re sure they’re trained, are you?” Malfoy asked, the panic seeping into his voice was even more pronounce now. Another minute and he’d be having a melt down. Now wouldn’t that be embarrassing. “Only it wouldn’t be the first time you’d brought wild stuff to class, would it?”

Students began to whisper their agreements, and to Amara’s shock, some Gryffindor’s too. And here she thought they were so devoted to Hagrid. Perhaps it was only the trio, then.

Hagrid scowled and looked a bit agitated. ‘’Course they’re trained,”

Malfoy seemed to be overflowing with questions today. “So what happened to your face, then?”

“Mind yer own business!” Hagrid finally snapped. “Now if yeh’ve finished askin’ stupid questions, follow me!”

At that, the half-giant stomped off into the forest. The students seemed to be frozen to their spots until finally Potter and his friends began to follow after Hagrid. Which, in the end, caused everyone else to follow them.

They walked for a while, and Amara soon became less nervous with everything. She trust Hagrid. Sort of.

Malfoy, on the other hand, was just a bundle of nerves. He’d squeeze Amara’s hand tightly at every noise.

Hagrid finally came to a stop and turned to face his frightened students. “Gather roun’, gather roun’. Now, they’ll be attracted by the smell o’ the meat but I’m goin’ ter give ’em a call anyway, ’cause they’ll like ter know it’s me. . . “

He turned around, his back to his students and let out a shrieking cry.

The kids around Amara looked like they were about to pee their pants. And she didn’t blame them. There was something ominous about the forest and the silence. And the waiting. The waiting for something big and scary to pop out.

Hagrid called again, sending out that loud shriek.

It fell silent again until finally Amara spotted the horse like creatures slowly coming out. She sucked in a sharp breath, spotting them. These creatures were something Amara had always been able to see since the day she came to Hogwarts. They were always pulling the carriages. And as far as she knew, not many could see them.

Amara took notice that Goyle could see them too, and she felt a rush of relief that he could.

“. . . here comes another one!” Hagrid called proudly. Students began to look this way and that in confusion. If they weren’t frightened before, they certainly were now. “Now, put yer hands up, who can seem ‘em?”

Goyle raised his hand.

Reluctantly, Amara raised her unoccupied hand as well. Draco looked at her like she had grown a second head.

Hagrid seemed to be nodding his head at Harry, mumbling softly to the boy.

“Excuse me,” Malfoy sneered. Looking quite frustrated. “But what exactly are we supposed to be seeing?”

Hagrid pointed to the cow carcass. Everyone fell into a hushed silence as they all stared at it intently. When the horse thing took a bit from it, gasps could be heard.

Amara could only imagine how odd it must be for the students who couldn’t see them. Flesh being torn and then just vanishing in thin air.

“What’s doing it?” some Gryffindor girl asked. It was easy to see that she was terrified.

Amara was just happy that it wasn’t Malfoy asking.

Hagrid stared at the students with a proud look on his face. “Thestrals. Hogwarts has got a whole heard of ‘em in here. Now, who knows-?”

“But they’re really, really unlucky!” the same Gryffindor from earlier cried out. “They’re supposed to bring all sorts of horrible misfortune on people who see them.”

Amara sucked in a breath, looking a bit alarmed. She huddled closer to Malfoy.

“No, no, no,” Hagrid laughed, “tha’s jus’ superstition, that is, they aren’ unlucky, they’re dead clever an’ useful! ‘Course, this lot don’ get a lot o’ work, it’s mainly jus’ pullin’ the school carriages unless Dumbledore’s takin’ a long journey an’ don’ want ter Apparate.”

Students began to mutter to one another. Some jumped back as the Thestrals walked by them. “Righ’ now, who can tell me why some o’ you can seem them an’ some can’t?”

Of course, Granger raised her hand.

“The only people who can see Thestrals are people who have seen death.”

Now Malfoy really gave Amara an odd look, as if she were some strange person.

Amara’s stomach sank. She should have never raised her hand. How in the world would she explain to Malfoy about seeing someone die.

“Hem, hem.”

Amara jumped. She glanced behind her and watched with horror as Umbridge walked towards the group of students.

“Oh, hello!” Hagrid smiled at Umbridge. The poor sap didn’t know what he was getting himself into.

Umbridge continued to talk to Hagrid while write things down on her clipboard. Amara stood there, wide eyed as she watched Umbridge mutter and write obvious insults about Hagrid on her clipboard. Draco laughed several times. But Amara couldn’t help but feel a bit bad for Hagrid.

He wasn’t her favorite out of al her professors, but she had a certain soft spot for him. He was like a big kid. So naive and just wanting to make people happy, it seemed.

Umbridge began to walk around, talking to students about Hagrid. The first person she went to, of course, was Parkinson.

Parkinson commented that she couldn’t understand Hagrid because everything he says sounds like a grunt.

Poor Granger looked like she was ready to explode with anger.

Amara couldn’t blame her.

Umbridge came up to Amara, much to the poor girls annoyance.

“What do you think about Professor Hagrid’s teaching?” Umbridge asked Amara.

Next to her Draco looked absolutely giddy. He was just waiting for Amara to voice her complaint.

But Amara was having none of it. She narrowed her eyes and glared at Professor Umbridge, willing her to go away. Amara was not going to say a single thing.

Sadly, Umbridge turned Amara’s silence around. She quickly scribbled onto her clipboard while muttering under her breath. “Too…frightened…to…speak....”

Amara wanted to slap Umbridge in the face.

Her grip on Malfoy’s hand tightened as Umbridge turned around and went over to Neville. Malfoy yelped, jumping away from Amara and shaking his hand, trying to rid the pain.

Amara gave him a meek smile and grabbed his hand once more, pulling him closer to her.

Umbridge seemed to be finished with her inspection, muttering a few more things as she wrote down whatever on her clipboard. By the time she left both Malfoy and Pansy were laughing so hard that they looked like they were going to pass out from the lack of oxygen.

For the rest of the class, Draco and Pansy and whispered to one another about what a big oaf Hagrid was.

Amara rolled her eyes as finally the bell rang and dragged Draco away from Parkinson.

“She’s such a bother.” Amara grumbled as she and Draco stopped short of the caste. She waited as students passed them by - mainly Parkinson, who seemed a bit happy that her and Draco had shared a laugh - before pulling Draco closer.

He raised a brow in curiosity.

She smiled and planted a kiss on his lips. “I’ll catch up with you later, okay?”

“Fine,” he replied with a nod of his head. Though he didn't seem quite fine with it. “You’ll sit with me at dinner, right?”

“Of course,” Amara replied, pulling him towards her again and kissing him. It lasted longer than the original one. Reluctantly, she pulled away. “I’ll see you later.”

He nodded once more before taking off towards the castle in hopes to catch up with Crabbe and Goyle.